Grace

Last Tuesday evening, the world came a little more alive.

In a space of community and possibility, 46 people became present to miracles - but not as we commonly understand miracles to be. Water was not changed into wine, no seas were parted, snow did not fall from the thunderclouds of Manila. Still, lives were altered permanently through a profound, unforgettable conversation.

We may live our entire lives without witnessing manna fall from heaven or seeing a dead person raised back to life. Then again, to my mind, that's one way to define the experience of Tuesday: the dead were in fact given life. Burdens that had been carried for decades, emotional hurts calloused over through the years, resentments, frustration, struggle - all were lifted in that one evening and continued to be released in the days that followed. Reports of miracles came back to us, left and right - and I remain in awe of what is possible when humanity is freed of the shackles it binds itself with. The dictionary defines a miracle as "such an effect or event manifesting or considered as a work of God." And yes, God was truly present as the space created by releasing months, years, lifetimes of struggle allowed the miracle of love to take place.

The heart of the conversation was the distinction GRACE - the realization that our life is, and always has been, a miracle. All the ordinary moments of it. And when we really get that, how we see and live our lives, from then on, will never be the same.

I don't believe in coincidence. Today, just before I spent a few ordinary, miraculous moments with friends, I wandered into a book sale and quickly picked up a couple of books to read over the long weekend, hardly browsing through what they were about. It was only a few minutes ago that I saw that one of the books, by Marianne Williamson, was exactly what I've just been writing about. It's about "having hope, finding forgiveness, and making miracles." The title? Everyday Grace. No coincidence indeed. :-)

God bless the miracle of your life.